Boise State rebounds from loss, defeats San Jose State 45-31

Boise State safety Dylan Sumner-Gardner intercepts a pass intended for San Jose State wide receiver Tim Crawley (2) in the first quarter Friday, Nov. 4, 2016, at Albertsons Stadium in Boise. Darin Oswalddoswald@idahostatesman.com

Boise State safety Dylan Sumner-Gardner intercepts a pass intended for San Jose State wide receiver Tim Crawley (2) in the first quarter Friday, Nov. 4, 2016, at Albertsons Stadium in Boise. Darin Oswalddoswald@idahostatesman.com

SCORING SUMMARY

Fourth quarter

SJSU—Malik Roberson 60 run (Kenny Potter run), 4:25. Key plays: On second-and-10, Roberson found a huge lane on the left side of the lane and went untouched for the score, two plays after an 11-yard pass on second-6 for the first down. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 0:56 elapsed. Boise State 45, San Jose State 23.

BSU—Alec Dhaenens 5 pass from Brett Rypien (Tyler Rausa kick), 4:25. Key plays: Running backs Alexander Mattison and Jeremy McNichols had nine carries on the drive. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on San Jose State on third down gave the Broncos a first down at the Spartans’ 12. They scored three plays later. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 6:48 elapsed. Boise State 45, San Jose State 23.

BSU—Cedrick Wilson 36 pass from Brett Rypien (Tyler Rausa kick), 14:49. Key plays: Rypien connected with running back Jeremy McNichols for 9 yards on a third-and-8 in Boise State territory. Running back Alexander Mattison ran for 7 yards on third-and-5 two plays before the score. It preceded a 16-yard pass from Rypien to tight end Jake Roh, his second catch of the season. Drive: 10 plays, 87 yards, 4:08. Boise State 38, San Jose State 16.

Third quarter

BSU—Cedrick Wilson 15 pass from Brett Rypien (Tyler Rausa kick), 11:11. Key plays: Junior running back Jeremy McNichols had a 27-yard on the drive’s third play, getting to the San Jose State 32. Freshman Alexander Mattison had four consecutive carries afterward for 17 yards, before the touchdown pass. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:49. Boise State 31, San Jose State 16.

Second quarter

SJSU—Bryce Crawford 39 field goal, 0:05. Key plays: Quarterback Kenny Potter hit receiver Justin Holmes for 39 yards on the drive’s third play to the Boise State 25. A Boise State penalty made a 44-yard field goal a 39-yarder. Drive: 7 plays, 53 yards, 2:01. Boise State 24, San Jose State 16.

BSU—Jeremy McNichols 7 run (Tyler Rausa kick), 2:06. Key plays: Quarterback Brett Rypien found receiver Chaz Anderson for a 32-yard pass on the drive’s first play to get to the Spartans’ 30. He had a 5-yard run on third-and-1 to get into the red zone. Drive: 8 plays, 73 yards, 2:07. Boise State 24, San Jose State 13.

BSU—Tyler Rausa 34 field goal, 5:19. Key plays: Facing a fourth-and-5 at the San Jose State 33, quarterback Brett Rypien found receiver Cedrick Wilson for 10 yards on a slant for the first down. Rausa’s field goal was his longest this season and first made since Sept. 24. Drive: 11 plays, 58 yards, 4:41. Boise State 17, San Jose State 13.

BSU—Alexander Mattison 19 run (Tyler Rausa kick), 13:48. Key plays: Punter Sean Wale took a fake 29 yards on fourth-and-12 to the Spartans’ 37, then Mattison, the freshman finished it off with three straight run before his third career TD. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:12. Boise State 14, San Jose State 6.

First quarter

SJSU—Bryce Crawford 39 field goal, 2:00. Key plays: A successful double reverse went for 13 yards early in the drive. On the next play, quarterback Kenny Potter hit receiver Tim Crawley for 18 yards to get to the Broncos’ 39. Drive: 11 plays, 73 yards, 5:43. Boise State 7, San Jose State 6.

SJSU—Bryce Crawford 21 field goal, 9:27. Key plays: The Spartans drove the ball well with plays of 14, 21 and 13 yards the first snaps n two Kenny Potter passes and a scramble for the first down. Drive: 9 plays, 71 yards, 2:49. Boise State 7, San Jose State 3.

BSU—Jeremy McNichols 19 run (Tyler Rausa kick), 12:16. Key plays: Safety Dylan Sumner-Gardner, making his first start of the season, intercepted San Jose State QB Kenny Potter at midfield on the third play from scrimmage, the Broncos’ third intereception of the season. McNichols rushed three times for 34 yards on the short drive. Drive: 4 plays, 49 yards, 1:24. Boise State 7, San Jose State 0.

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Postgame quotes

Head Coach Bryan Harsin

On the game:

“I just got done telling the team that I’m really proud of them. I thought they did a great job of avoiding distractions. I thought the focus this week was right on the point. It’s all in or in the way.”

“Bronco nation and Albertsons Stadium were great. The blackout was fun.”

“[San Jose State] showed some things that we have been hit on. They roasted us on occasions and made some serious plays. I thought they had a good game plan, but I felt like my guys all week were preparing for that.”

On playing while not controlling their own destiny:

“We have to stay focused on what we can control, focus on going and playing our best.”

On Dylan Sumner-Gardner’s interception:

“DSG helped us win the turnover battle by one. The interception turned into points, so we won that battle. And that right there is huge.”

On running back Alexander Mattison and the combo of him and Jeremy McNichols:

“When I say that I’m excited; he’s a young player, and he is just fun. People want to test the physicality of freshman. Two guys over one hundred yards, that’s a good night. Those guys can run, you kind of have to pick your poison.”

On the fake punt:

“The fake punt got called out at pregame, we were going to run that no matter what. It was exactly what we hoped.”

On the onside kick at the end of the game:

“I think it is just a matter of whatever happens, we have to be ready for the onside kick or whatever it is.”

On the amount of players who got touches Friday:

“We are trying to spread the wealth a little bit….Brett did a nice job tonight of finding some guys. We need to keep expanding peoples roles, you can’t just slow down what you are doing.”

Linebacker Ben Weaver

On the team’s defensive performance:

“Defensively I think there is still a lot we can improve on. No matter if you win or lose, there is a standard there. The pursuit of perfection.”

“Our coaches spend a lot of time writing up game plans, we need to do a better job executing them. We are continuously working on tackling fundamentals.”

On San Jose State QB Kenny Potter:

“He’s an incredible athlete and a great quarterback. If he gets you in space, he is going to break you off.”

On the game:

“I’m extremely happy we got the win. The goal at the end of every day is to leave with a W.”

Cornerback Jonathan Moxey

On the game:

“It felt good to come home and win on the Blue.”

On having a targeting call reversed:

“I didn’t want to miss my second-to-last game on the blue, so when that targeting penalty got overturned, I was grateful.”

On the performance of the secondary:

“It’s great to go out there and see them execute and do what they need to do. We have to continue doing our jobs, and playing disciplined.”

“DSG (Dylan Sumner-Gardner) did a great job going up to get the ball on the post, it brought a lot of momentum.”

On Sean Wale’s 29-yard run on the fake punt:

“It was great to see a guy like Sean to be making plays. That’s one thing about the Broncos, we got depth.”

Wide Receiver Cedrick Wilson

On the team’s running attack and freshman Alexander Mattison:

“Each week coach says we have to stay true to what defines us, and that is running the ball.”

“[Alex] just gets the job done, when J-Mac is tired he steps up.”

Punter Sean Wale

On his 29-yard run on a fake punt:

“I never get to do anything, so I finally got my chance after four years, and had to take advantage of it.”

On getting physical, being tackled, hitting a defender:

“I respect those guys, I couldn’t get hit like that every play. They are built for it.”

On how the Broncos see an opportunity for a fake:

“The look was on, we acted normal, then we executed. I’m not out there looking for fakes, I just want to make sure I do my job.”

“We have things that we carry over throughout games, when we have a look that we like we aren’t afraid to attack it.”

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Boise State (7-1, 3-1) hosts San Jose State (3-6, 2-3) at 8:15 p.m. Friday at Albertsons Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2. Follow along for live coverage here all night.